FedEx's air cargo hub in Piedmont comes under fire as traffic declines

FedEx's US$228 million mid-Atlantic air cargo hub at Piedmont Triad International (PTI) Airport has failed to meet expectations in the three years since its opening, according to the Shipping Gazette.The facility was expected to eventually employ 1,500 staff but only has jobs for 400; daily flights amount to 10 but were anticipated to stand at 63; and its total volume of cargo handled only rose by 17 per cent in 2011 compared to 2008, the year before the hub was opened, reports the Pittsburg area Business Journal. It noted, on the other hand, that the express mail and cargo giant is by far the busiest air cargo company based at PTI airport in Greensboro. It handled about 55 million pounds of cargo in 2011, accounting for 60 per cent of the total volume handled at the airport.